Pick Your Own

No, not your nose. It's Pick Your Own fruits and veggies and it's how we spent the day yesterday! We went to Larriland Farm in Howard County. First we picnicked with friends and their babies, all of which are around the same age as Jacob.





Jacob is getting stronger and stronger on his belly. He manages to find some interesting things when it's tummy time.








Then we went on a hayride, which he enjoyed very much on Caroline's lap. Caroline poured hay over him and he thought it was very funny. He laughed and giggled the whole way.







Then we went apple picking. That was great. We got a bunch of fresh apples that I can't wait to dig into.

All in all, it was a great day. We tried to make it to the pumpkin patch for a picture, but as we were driving back to it, Jacob passed out from his big adventure so we just went on home. He had a great time and we plan on going back in the spring for berry picking.

Giggle Fits and such

Today's feature is Giggle Fits by Jacob Irving Harmon-Darrow. He finds life very amusing right now. It's such a pleasure. Please enjoy.

What's new? Well, we are transitioning Jacob into his own crib. He's been sleeping in a co-sleeper since we brought him home and we think the time has come for him to sleep in his own room. He's been sleeping through the night for months (with the exception of this week) so it's not as important to have him at arm's reach. Even though he's been waking up at the 3 a.m. hour this week for no apparent reason, I'm hoping the transition to his crib will actually help him to sleep through the night again. Caroline has blocked his windows with dark coverings to keep the room nice and dark for him. It's been helping his napping a lot. He's had a few nice long naps in his crib this week. Wish us luck with our new sleeping arrangements!

Here's the most recent list of foods Jacob eats: tofu, mango, millet, barley, brown rice, sweet potato, carrots, apples, pears, nectarines, peaches, peas, asparagus, avocado, egg (yolk), and yogurt. I may be forgetting something, but that's a pretty full list.

This weekend we're heading out to Larriland Farm to pick our own yummies and have a hayride. Aidan and Steffie will be joining us. Fun!

Rosh Hashanah

Jacob had his first trip to Florida this week to celebrate Rosh Hashanah with Bubbie and the rest of my family. It was great! Jacob was really good on the plane. The only tears were due to an overdue nap. He loved going to the airport and looking around at all the goings-ons.

In Florida, he spent a lot of time on his Bubbie's lap. He loved Bubbie!
















Unfortunately, he didn't love the pool.

Or the beach...

But we had lots of fun at Aunt Ninette's and Uncle Sy's house.

And he was a big hit at synagogue with his cute yarmulke.

Overall, it was a great trip. Jacob had lots of fun with my aunt and uncle and cousins. He can't wait to go back. He also tried his first mango and he things it was really yummy.

First Teeth, First Cold

What a week for Jacob! On Monday, Jacob's first teeth cut through the gums. The two bottom center teeth are coming in. Now he's learning what he can do with them ... like bite. No worries. He's pretty well behaved while nursing.

His other first of the week is not as fun - his first cold. Jacob has been pretty congested for the last 24 hours. Last night offered very little sleep for me and Caroline as we took turns holding him upright so he could fall asleep and drain his sinuses. Caroline made a MacGyver-like adjustment to his bassinet so he could be propped up while sleeping. It was great and helped Jacob sleep really well.

Last but not least, Jacob is working really hard on sitting up on his own (see picture to the right)! He can stay up for at least 30 to 60 seconds before tumbling over.

Well, the peanut has finally awoken from his extended sleep. That means it's time for his second breakfast. Here I come Jake!

Nap Time Post Script

Ahhh... finally. It's been 1.5 hours.

Nap time ... I wish

Today's blog is being co-authored by Jacob, himself. The photo is courtesy of the web cam that Grandpa bought us. Pretty cool, huh?

So recently, Jacob has shrugged off his nap time. At best we get a 45 minute nap once or twice a day. I'm not sure what has brought about this change, but I hope it's only temporary.

Jacob has started moving himself around more intentionally. He's getting really good at sitting on his own and now he's starting to reach for toys that are just beyond his grasp. This is a precursor to crawling, though I think we're a long way from that. As long as he's on the path, we're happy.

He's added some more foods to his diet this week. He loved carrots, which we started last week. We also added asparagus and barley. He's taken right to the barley. He's so-so about asparagus. Sometimes he eats it right up and other times he says he can do without it. Today we're also adding pears.

Well, Jacob's giving me the signal that it's time for lunch so we'll sign off for now.

Avocado!

Jacob started solid foods about a month ago. His discovery of eating is so much fun! Initially, he didn't know what to make of the rice cereal we were feeding him and the spoon we were using. Now he eagerly opens his mouth for a spoonful of something.

Caroline makes all of his food at home using recipes from various resources. Of course, being from California, she was very invested in his affection for avocado. At first, he rejected the green fruit. But after several tries, we added a bit of breast milk to it and he enjoyed it very much! We had the same experience with bananas. He rejected it over and over, so we took a break. Then recently Caroline tried again by mixing it with yogurt and he loved it. Today, I fed him straight banana ... okay, there was a hint of breast milk in it.

Currently, his solid food diet consists of apples, bananas, rice cereal, yogurt, and avocado when it's available. We will be adding carrots this week.

Three more weeks until our trip to Bubbie!